Jewelry Store Update & Seasonal Transitions

     I started pulling out my jewelry supplies again around Christmas time, and this was about as far as I got. There is one tiny bracelet in limbo, but I am working on finding my corner of the house, or until we move to get my inspiration back. I've been focusing on my fashion blog, and it's basically all I think about right now. In the next month or two I will be moving, so there is hope we will get rid of a bunch of stuff, or find a larger home to hold everything. 

     In the meantime, I want to discuss what to expect on my Etsy shop in the next few months. I like to come up with a new store banner every season, or for holidays and sales. There are many websites that offer free banner templates. Just type "free banner templates" into Google, and you should be directed to an array of options. You can edit these templates in Paint or Gimp, or some other photo editor. 

     I'm also going to start thinking of having a sale in the next few weeks. The next few months after Christmas can be very slow for some shops, so it's a good idea to think of having some sort of promotion. I might take this time to try and clear out inventory so that I can start thinking of fresh new jewelry ideas. I use Etsy on Sale to host a sale, because it looks professional, and it's super easy. 

     I'll keep in touch with my plans, and start posting more advice and such. 

     Bless you!

Getting Ready for Christmas in July

Mushroom Pendant Necklace

OK, so Christmas in July is literally four or five days away, and I haven't even begun to get started. I have a good amount of items in my shop, so my best suggestion for all of the last minute people out there is to put your items on sale. This will allow your shop to gain some competitive edge. 

I really like the look of Etsy On Sale when cutting prices. It slashes the original price for you on the item widget, so shoppers will know the original price, and the new price. I also like to have the word "sale" on the item widget title. This way if anyone were searching for Etsy items on sale, your store will be located somewhere in their search. 

At first I was hesitant to use Etsy On Sale because you have to pay in order to use it. But since it's a business expense and looks professional, I don't mind the cost. And if you purchase the $25 credit bundle, which is the best price, your credits will go a longer way. I always sell something when I use the Etsy On Sale sales event option. There is always at least one shopper who likes the price. 

There are also other features you may use through Etsy On Sale, such as a "tag tool," which allows you to edit multiple item tags at once. It is so fast and convenient. I cannot believe that in the past I would go through each item one by one in order to update tags. It was so time-consuming!

You may also use an "auto-renewal" tool. For five credits, you are able to renew your items as many times as you want in a month. Some people find their items sell more frequently when they renew their items a certain amount of times in a month. I am not sure if this is the case anymore, but it used to be that if you renewed your items, it would put them towards the top of search pages. I believe Etsy changed this, though, and now it should sort by relevancy. 

Etsy On Sale also allows you to set sales events so that they will begin automatically at a time of day of your choice on any date you choose for a maximum of 4 weeks. Let's say you are forgetful like me or have a million things on your mind and you forget a certain holiday is coming up. You can set a sales event ahead of time and your items will go on sale just in time for the holiday shopping rush. Next thing you know, you check your email and boom, you have a message indicating you sold an item. Wahoo!

I hope this was helpful to everyone. Please leave your questions and thoughts. Also, check out my store at anotheruse.etsy.com.

How To Make The Most Out Of Your Etsy Activity Feed

If you sell on Etsy and do not use your activity feed -- you should. Every time I log into Etsy account I check on my activity feed to see which members in my circle are favoriting items, treasuries and shops; who is sharing the things I share; and who is following me. This gives you a lot of opportunities to get exposure and join a circle of people just as passionate as you are. 

The first thing you need to do is click on the "Following" column of your activity feed, and look through all of the recent activity of members in your circle and favorite every item that appears. This seems to work effectively by showing support to all of the Etsy sellers that find their way into your activity feed. You also want to go to the items you favorited at this point and favorite their associated shops. Add them to your circle, too.

Once you are done looking at your circles activity, look at the "Interactions" column, which shows which of your activity was liked by others. You will get to see what other people find trendy and if people are favoriting your activity. If someone new interacts with you, "follow" them and favorite their shop if you haven't already. I found out that after following so many shops, Etsy puts a cap on how many people you can follow. At this time I follow about 1080 people, and I cannot add more people to my list. I am told to remove some people before I can add any more. But every once in awhile I am able to add someone new to my following list. 

Lastly, you want to look in the column labeled, "Your Shop," to see which people are favoriting your items, treasuries, or shop. Make sure you follow their shop; add them to your circle; favorite their shop and items; and look at items they favorite. If possible, you might even want to build treasuries out of these shops and items. 

I hope you found this blog-post useful. It has been several years since I started my own Etsy shop and self-educating. Now I would like to share my own knowledge and inspire others out there. You can do it!

THANKS EVERYONE!

Stephanie

Fashion Blog

I have always wanted to start a fashion blog because I love fashion, of course. Getting back into making jewelry has been off to a slow start, but I was hoping to merge the two over time since jewelry is fashion. It will be a work in progress, but I expect that I will fulfill the trends I spot, as well as some trends I'd like to set myself. I am involved in a wide social network, now I just have to find my niche with Etsy and fashion. It is difficult to stand out among so many wonderful blogs out there, but I hope by using the confessional journal idea to draw interest, as our lives are all different. I'm only human. I'm not perfect and sometimes life us all on unique journeys. Now that I have found a stable surrounding, I expect to get just what I am looking for.

Check out my new blog at dressdynamic.blogspot.com

New Beginnings of Life in the City

After such a long time away, I had to finally explain myself. Colorado was beautiful and a wonderful experience. I learned a lot of new life skills and that even though I love making jewelry, it wasn't exactly a successful career. Let's just say, I haven't given up yet, but this is a brief relapse of time. 

View from Reunion Tower

I am now living in Preston Hollow, Texas in the heart of Dallas. I'm so blessed the way life worked out. Things were very rough at the end following my last blog post in 2011. Now I am more than proud to say I have a great job that pays well so I don't have to work multiple jobs, as I once was. I'm dating someone new who gladly gives me the opportunity to live the lifestyle I have been dreaming about for years. 

I have never lived in a city as large as Dallas before now. It was extremely overwhelming and intimidating at first. Especially around University and Highland Park. I'm across the highway, but in Preston Hollow it is no less ritzy. I have had the opportunity to gift many pieces of my jewelry to get the exposure it deserves. My boyfriend's mother came up with the idea to have a jewelry party at her house with snacks, wine and my jewelry displayed around the house. It was a brilliant success, and I had a blast discovering the real value of my work. 

Jewelry Party

I'm still in college, but I'll be done in two semesters. It's been a long journey. I won't be graduating with the degree I was originally working towards, but I will get a degree nonetheless. That's all I care about. I will be the first in my immediate family to have a degree, so it makes me feel accomplished. Every semester has been a struggle - I have wanted to give up many times. But now I see the light at the end of the tunnel. Two more semesters! This summer I plan to take more time for the things I love and exploring the beautiful city of Dallas. Stay posted on my progress. 

MIA Update

Find here: Spike necklace

For all of those who have wondered where in the world AnotherUse went, please forgive me. Life threw some curve balls at me and keeping up became impossible. It is now my summer break from college - just two more semesters left! I will be making my best effort to start posting weekly, if not daily. My creativity is aching to be released.

Etsy Seller Confessions: Day 13

Hi dearies!


I've been an avid Etsy seller since December 2010. When I first opened my store, AnotherUse, in December 2009, I had no idea how to sell my items online. I thought all I had to do was take a couple of decent photos of my items and post them, and people would buy. How wrong was I? I never sold my first item until December 11, 2010. What a shock that was! I actually forgot that I even had items for sale on Etsy. 

Photo of my first item sold. My photos have improved!

All of a sudden one day I'm reading an email stating that I have money waiting for me at Paypal. In the times of desperation when you're wondering how you are going to make enough money to pay your bills, money falls into your lap just like that. What a feeling! From that point on, I vowed that I would work harder on making more out of what I loved. It hasn't paid for all of my bills yet, but a couple are better than none. 

Makin' sure my babies get to eat plenty!

In the past 6 months, I have learned more than I could imagine about how to sell through Etsy and online. It involves so many elements, the whole time I've had to tell myself the work will pay off. Plus I love learning new things! Once I started subscribing to the Etsy Success newsletters, and blog, the knowledge became endless. I spend 10-12 hours a day, sometimes, just updating, taking photographs and notes, reading and typing, watching videos, all to understand just how you get people to notice my idea on the internet, as well as in person. 

Braving the rapids in life.

I believe that after all I have learned, the most important component of owning a jewelry business involves networking. If you don't have a well-structured social network, you will have a hard time selling items. I've been given some excellent advice from other Etsians just because I asked for it. That is a big step; just being able to ask for help when you need it. I'm always willing to share what I have learned so far. Anyone feel free to leave a comment if you ever have questions about Etsy and upcycling.


Thanks everyone!


Stephanie